Well...I'm shocked. Now I still think we can win the Series, maybe even in 5 but only if the way our Pistons played today was an aberration, a glitch, an exception, AN OUTRAGE.

I don't understand it at all. Certainly the Pistons couldn't be nervous. Could they be complacent already? I mean wouldn't the excitement of a new run to the possible Championship have them a little stimulated? Because the starters played like it was a meaningless game at the end of the season. Maybe Flip forgot to tell them it was their first playoff game. Maybe it's all his fault.

Anyway, I love ya Sheed. I love ya Rip, Tay, C-Bill, Dice. But you didn't look like contenders. Everything looked very disorganized and even lacking in confidence.Against the Sixers. Or was it just a very bad game for reasons we can not ascertain. Just a bad day maybe. You win some, you lose some?

But you guys looked like you shouldn't have made the playoffs today. So get it together. My entire living room is decorated like a Pistons sports bar. Don't make me look like a fool.

Play up to your abilities from now on. It's win or go home time. C'mon you guys.

P.S. Are you trying to sabotage Flip's job? Seriously, wth is going on? Come back to yourselves, I miss you.

P.P.S. Right now the Celtics are playing a very bad team. They appear to be taking them seriously and keeping their focus. Maybe you should turn on the game in the locker room there and see for yourselves.

We gave up tons of offensive rebounds, and yet, our coach saw fit to leave out our best rebounder, Amir Johnson.

Our coach did see fit to play Hunter to start the 4th quarter, even though we have a long history of playing poorly with Hunter on the floor in past playoffs. And Hunter is nothing but older, much much older, than he was back in 04. Wrong guy to be out there. Nice he hit the triple in the first half. But even in 04, Larry Brown knew to only play Hunter for a few key moments here and there. Afflalo was the guy who should have been out there, not Hunter. No reason at all for this goof except Saunders has a vendetta against Joe Dumars and his orders to play the youth.

The question becomes, now that we witnessed the first game and how absurd Flip can choose to be, will he do the same the next game. Anohter question, if Flip does this again next game, should Dumars fire him on the spot.

Philly is a team that Detroit can beat with ease, if they play there best players. Shame on the fans who continually support Flip in not playing Afflalo and Amir. You know who you are. Your permission was gladly taken by Flip and abused mightily tonight.

Sheed played absolutely fanstastic in the first half. But who failed to notice he got no rest? Just a few minutes. He did a little in the 3rd, with what little he had left. And zilch in the 4th. Empty tank.

And Tay. Big shot to take late in the game. But who could possibly fail to notice that Tay got no rest in the 2nd half. Just a few ineffective minutes from Hunter. Yes, Hunter playing instead of Tay. What a dropoff, and one that was totally not needed. Afflalo could have been playing those minutes at backup small forward.

Maxiell was a monster. Tay played fine, until toward the end of the game. He is human. He needs rest. Tay was holding Iggy to near nothing, and getting a score for us here and there. But not anything in late in the game in crunch time as his coach forget something called rest.

Rip was so so. He scored here and there but nothing steady either. Can't say he helped much either way toward a win or a loss.

Flip did well in limiting the minutes of Dyess, who did well in his fairly short minutes. Dyess drew several fouls and got some rebounds. If only he did not take any outside shots though. Flip also did well in limiting the minutes of Hayes, who was a defensive liability with Iggy out there. But unfortunately, after a whole season, he still never figured out some alternative. Because he refuses to coach. Instead, he just fights Dumars. And the fight continues. Who will win the battle between now and Wednesday. If Dumars wins, the Pistons will win. Otherwise, we will see this same game repeated, only Philly will be even more full of confindence. Stay tuned.

A smile just went up in Cleveland, Boston Orlando as the sixers pulled the upset...Some guy named Stern was in the NY NBA offices was smiling too.

.This game was lost in the third qtr when they blew that 15 point lead as the starters wore down...and Flip played all but Dice the whole period. Then the three missed FT's by CB was also a killer.. In fact Mr. BS was just BullSht

Pistons win the first half 51-38 and lose the second half 52-35

I knew this team was a tough matchup, but this is a downer.... Sheed played great with the zoo crew in second qtr, but when they had Tay out there in the 4th with the zoo crew, it was just terrible....

Starters shot 34% for the game. They played scared at the end. Flip's job is safe. Joe saw the game and he'll trade players if we don't make it out of this series. However, like I stated before..Pistons in 6...It'll just seem LONGER...

Probably the starters were not ready as they haven't played all that much lately. We really looked out of sync. Doubt that this game is really true. Hope that it isn't true. If the starters don't play better, we can't go far.

Well...I'm shocked. Now I still think we can win the Series, maybe even in 5 but only if the way our Pistons played today was an aberration, a glitch, an exception, AN OUTRAGE.

I don't understand it at all. Certainly the Pistons couldn't be nervous. Could they be complacent already? I mean wouldn't the excitement of a new run to the possible Championship have them a little stimulated? Because the starters played like it was a meaningless game at the end of the season. Maybe Flip forgot to tell them it was their first playoff game. Maybe it's all his fault.

Anyway, I love ya Sheed. I love ya Rip, Tay, C-Bill, Dice. But you didn't look like contenders. Everything looked very disorganized and even lacking in confidence.Against the Sixers. Or was it just a very bad game for reasons we can not ascertain. Just a bad day maybe. You win some, you lose some?

But you guys looked like you shouldn't have made the playoffs today. So get it together. My entire living room is decorated like a Pistons sports bar. Don't make me look like a fool.

Play up to your abilities from now on. It's win or go home time. C'mon you guys.

P.S. Are you trying to sabotage Flip's job? Seriously, wth is going on? Come back to yourselves, I miss you.

P.P.S. Right now the Celtics are playing a very bad team. They appear to be taking them seriously and keeping their focus. Maybe you should turn on the game in the locker room there and see for yourselves.

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No they won't. After horrible losses to boston billups answered "we are what we are". Take it as you want

I debated making a post about how we were going to get killed by their athleticism if we didn't play Amir, and killed by their perimeter players if AA didn't play, and how i thought this series would be super tough b/c of Flip's inability to adjust and Mo's willingness to use Young, etc. but i didn't want to put out "negative" vibes before the game.

I didn't watch the game, and i don't think i'm going to. I'm just going to go back and read the recaps. The fact that we were up 15 and lost makes me really upset. I thought we could lose but not this way.

It's only game 1 i guess, but if we continue not to see AA/Amir, we're screwed.

Also i briefly read "3 guard lineup" and match-up with Iggy's quickness. If that didn't include AA, i shudder to think who was out there.

edited to add;

I HATE FLIP SAUNDERS. Just thought i'd throw that out there for cathartic purposes.

A very disappointing, almost bewildering, game by the Pistons. No real playoff intensity by the Pistons for much of second half. And, as somebody else noted, the offense was badly disorganized in that half. Saunders seemed helpless out there when things started falling apart. His answer for the starters' problems in the third quarter was to play Lindsay for long stretches.

With less than a minute remaining, and the Pistons behind, Rasheed thought it was a good time to joke around with the 76ers by joining their huddle on the court. It was mildly amusing, but what does it say about his focus? Shortly thereafter, Rasheed missed a key layup, and that was basically the ballgame.

What i don't get is why we go away from what was working all year with Stuck/AA, and start using LH esp against an athlethic young team like the Sixers? Stuckey/Lindsey proved ineffective. I don't understand how Flip didn't see that.

And if we were getting killed on the O glass, why not play you most athlethic rebounder?

1. we got too greedy in trades
2. the devil is back to collect
3. i overated our pitching..we lost Miller and Jurjjens and kept Bonderman and Robertson
4. Grandy will have to have a MVp season for Tigers to win 90 games.
5. no way this team will go 84- 59 to close out the year
6. sixers will sweep Pistons
7. wings lose in second round
8. I'll be fired from my job
9. viagra will be found to have a virus effect like in I am Legend
10. damon jones will be MVP as cavs sweep lakers

Is DET the only team who's ball handling gets worse when they go to 3 guards?

This is the same 'ol, same 'ol. They run their pointless, directionless offense, up-faking their way out of open shots and force themselves into situations where they have to trade off 1 on 1 plays with the other team. AI is a better 1 on 1 player than anyone on the Pistons. It was only a matter of time before they lost. There was approximately a 0.0% chance of them scoring when there was 23 seconds left.

CB and Rip would like you to know that they are the best back court in the L and that they get no recognition.

...Sheed played absolutely fanstastic in the first half. But who failed to notice he got no rest? Just a few minutes. He did a little in the 3rd, with what little he had left. And zilch in the 4th. Empty tank.

And Tay. Big shot to take late in the game. But who could possibly fail to notice that Tay got no rest in the 2nd half. Just a few ineffective minutes from Hunter. Yes, Hunter playing instead of Tay. What a dropoff, and one that was totally not needed. Afflalo could have been playing those minutes at backup small forward.

Maxiell was a monster. Tay played fine, until toward the end of the game. He is human. He needs rest. Tay was holding Iggy to near nothing, and getting a score for us here and there. But not anything in late in the game in crunch time as his coach forget something called rest.

Rip was so so. He scored here and there but nothing steady either. Can't say he helped much either way toward a win or a loss.

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Lee, I'm a little encouraged by your analysis here. If starter fatigue was a contributing factor to the loss, at least I'm less confused by how alien our team looked to me. Of course we have no assurance that Flip will change his starter riding ways in the rest of our playoff games.

I guess we're all going to go along for the ride as we rollercoaster around with the Pistons and the issues of the season: who to play and when to play them to win games.

And if we were getting killed on the O glass, why not play you most athlethic rebounder?

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I don't know about that. Reggie Evans is one of the five best rebounders ever to play in the NBA, and he's extremely strong. Amir might be too frail to try to box him out at this point in his career.

If McDyess weren't being so worthless, he's probably the only Piston I'd trust to keep him off the glass - or Sheed, but Sheed's trying to anchor the team's defense and is perpetually being drawn out of position helping Chauncey, Rip, and Tayshaun.